An industry CEO’s final plea to Trump, Harris
Paxos CEO Charles Cascarilla’s open letter hits a little different as voters get set to cast their ballots next week
Former President Donald Trump | lev radin/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks
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A week out from the US election, the CEO of blockchain infrastructure firm Paxos is imploring the next presidential administration to be better than the last (when it comes to crypto).
Charles Cascarilla’s open letter to Donald Trump and Kamala Harris doesn’t say much that hasn’t been said before.
But perhaps the letter hits a little different as voters — millions of which own crypto — get set to cast their ballots next week. And, just days ago, Stripe’s $1.1 billion acquisition of Bridge sends a signal that non-crypto companies recognize the compelling benefits of stablecoin-based payments.
Cascarilla’s letter addresses familiar key points: While the US is an “inhospitable” place for financial innovation, the EU, UAE and others have capitalized on those “missteps” via regimes “that support safe innovation.”
The “regulatory overreach, questionable banking policies and onerous and needless legal actions” in the US have resulted in “enormous costs in wasted time and money,” Cascarilla adds.
To that point, Consensys on Tuesday revealed cuts impacting 20% of its workforce.
“Multiple cases with the SEC, including ours, represent meaningful jobs and productive investment lost due to the SEC’s abuse of power and Congress’s inability to rectify the problem,” Consensys CEO Joe Lubin wrote. “Such attacks from the US government will end up costing many companies that have been investigated, sued or sent Wells Notices, many millions of dollars.”
While Trump has said he would fire SEC Chair Gary Gensler, Harris has not made any such statement. Blockchain Association’s Ron Hammond previously told me the industry is waiting for more clarity on that from the VP.
In the meantime, digital dollars will continue to move offshore until there is a stablecoin framework that drives innovation, Cascarilla wrote.
The positive note from the Paxos CEO: “Thankfully, there is bipartisan interest in fixing this broken status quo.”
Hammond said earlier this month he believed the chance of a stablecoin bill getting passed by the end of 2024 was 30%. That’s not exactly great. But at least it’s higher than the Yankees’ World Series title odds at this point.
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